Documenting increased participation of a student with autism in the standards for mathematical practice.

Abstract

The Common Core State Standards articulate expectations for student participation in mathematical reasoning, sense making, and discussion. Yet little to no research explores the participation of students with autism in these practices. Drawing on neurodiversity and situated sociocultural theory, this article offers a case study of the mathematics engagement of Oscar, a fifth-grade student with autism, over the duration of 1 school year. Using field notes, videotapes of classroom interactions, student work, and teacher and student interviews, we examined the influence of the classroom activity system on this student’s participation in mathematical reasoning and discourse before and after a classroom intervention targeted to improve student engagement by making participation norms more explicit. Prior to the classroom intervention, Oscar did not participate verbally in small-group or whole-group mathematical discussion. After the classroom intervention, along with additional scaffolds such as increased peer accountability and collaborative strategy shares, Oscar increased his verbal and nonverbal participation in both small- and whole-group discussion. Through our year-long study, Oscar shifted from a student who did not speak in math class to one who explained his mathematical thinking in multiple contexts. We call for additional qualitative research in mathematics that seeks to understand the unique participation of students with autism, seeking understanding of how to better include these students in the Standards for Mathematical Practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved)